My brother just had a birthday.   

 

A big one.  The big 4-0.

It makes me think.

He has been my best friend for most of my life (all but the first year or so!).

The one person who can share almost all of my  memories back through 10 houses, lots of moves, births, marriages and deaths, friends, campouts--and camp songs, embarrassing stories--everything.

When his voice changed, and he learned that he loved to sing, he talked me into singing the high parts on every song with a good bass line (specifically, "Blue Moon"--the Marcels version, and "Under the Boardwalk"and "Elvira", along with a few others) so he could do the "down low parts".  His love of singing and his guitar playing inspired his friends, siblings and cousins, and created quite a few new musicians.

He has always been bold and daring, and ready for new adventures.

He can quote a movie perfectly after watching it once.

He is the world's best dyer of Easter eggs (seriously, he made a plaid egg one year using only standard egg dye and masking tape).
The best perpetrator of clever April Fools pranks.
The best carver of Jack O'lanterns (although his younger brothers are also pretty darn awesome in the "Uncle Arts"!).

He has the most incredibly mobile face--so expressive, so flexible--only Danny Kaye and Donald O'Connor can do it justice.  And--as more than one person who ended up snorting liquid out their nose can attest, an amazing sense of humor, genius level comedic timing, and super expressive eyebrows.

Now there are a lot of miles between us, but I still love him just as much, think about him, quote him and look for things that would make him laugh.

So--little brother,

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

TO A GUY WHO IS STILL 
(AS ALWAYS) 
TRULY 
OUTSTANDING IN HIS FIELD!

Whew! What a great week!

The entire month of March was so incredibly busy and booked solid that even though everything was good, it is kind of nice to return to our usual levels of crazy! 

The week before last at Church we had the Relief  Society (Adult Women’s Group) Birthday Dinner, which was very fun.  They had different sisters decorate tables in a seasonal theme—I had a “winter” table.  It was fun to see the different personalities and approaches.  My table did turn out really pretty—I had some sheer fabric in a “watery” print in several shades of blue that I used for a tablecloth, then I cut a giant (3 feet across) snowflake with RS themes—a wheat sheaf up the middle, hearts above that, the ornate “RS” letters  from the symbol, and the upper edge was sisters holding a heart between each of them (just the little paper dollies that  “hold hands”) I put a clear plastic tablecloth over it so it wouldn’t snag, and then a funny little centerpiece.  The evening was super nice.

The chicks are growing fast—not as cute as they used to be!  We have a mix of breeds (we just got the “Brown Egg Layer Assortment”)—I don’t know what kinds the yellow chicks (at least 2 breeds, as they are different shades of yellow!) will be, but I know the little black and yellow, that have a little yellow dot on their head like a fingerprint will grow into “barred” hens—black and white stripes.  Very pretty ladies—I am excited.

The kids had their temple trip and LargeBoy got to go to his first OA Fellowship (Order of the Arrow is the Boy Scout’s Honor Society) WITH Grandpa A.  When my Dad was helping us with the kitchen last year, LargeBoy was going on his first OA Fellowship, and Dad mentioned that he had been in the OA as a youth, and had always meant to get around to being active again.  So, for his birthday, I did the legwork to get the needed forms, and paid for his enrollment, and this was their first activity together. 

I went to an all day New Trustees Seminar for the Library.  It was at a really cool Library, and it was very well done—the speakers were all interesting, and I did learn a lot.  I was debating taking SmallDaughter to see “Veggie-Tales Live” that evening, but she was sick all week, and was still not feeling good enough. 

Sunday was Seminary day, and since LargeCousin was on spring break, she got to come to our Sunday Seminary Class with us, and then have a sleepover.  On Monday, I was supposed to be very busy running lots of errands, but it snowed enough that it basically shut everything down—I was SO grateful!  It gave me time to stay home and clean and get things at least partially ready for all the company! 

BigGirl did have her first 4-H meeting in the evening.  LargeCousin and LargeBoy are not doing 4-H this year, as they have too many other things going on.  I don’t mind—I am really proud of how well they have done in the past, and it is their decision what they want to do with their time and energy.  LargeBoy will be spending most of his time finishing up his Eagle project, besides going to the National Scout Jamboree. 

On Tuesday I took LargeCousin into town in the morning and took my inlaws their Birthday loot and ran some of Monday’s errands.  In the afternoon, BigGirl & I went to Yoga and Herb Class—it was on Native herbs and I was very relieved to find that many of the weeds that I have not gotten rid of are actually very beneficial! 

On Wednesday, Sister A’s family arrived and things started to get busy! In the evening we went in to have dinner with Sister M & Sister A’s families at Dad’s house.

Things really picked up on Thursday.  The guy’s picked up the awesome playset that dad had ordered from Lowes, and they got right to work on it.  I am really glad we got the kit, with all the wood pre cut and drilled, because even with that they still had over 2 full days of work to get it done!  It is AWESOME! And it has all of the features that will be great for SmallDaughter for a long time.  There was a huge bunch of cooking—I still have loads of excellent leftovers!  It was noisy, and chaotic, and FABULOUS! We averaged between 35 and 45 people all weekend long!

On friday, we helped the kids dye 5 dozen hard boiled eggs (and by "helped"--we let all the teenagers and college age awesome people "show them how it's done"!)  We had some awesome eggs!  Friday evening, we got LOTS of pizzas and we set up the projector and watched “The Princess Bride”.  It was so fun!  And—as many times as I have seen parts and bits, I haven’t watched the whole movie for years! My Favorite Gentleman got to come home on Friday, but he threw his neck and back out, and was in a lot of pain the whole weekend!

On Saturday, we had the Easter egg hunt.  It was rather cool and blustery—pretty early for a really warm Easter.  In the evening, Sister M, BigGirl, Aunt A, LargeCousin & I went to watch the Young Women's Broadcast .  It was so excellent.  

On Sunday, we filled the first 4 rows in Sacrament Meeting, and we almost doubled the primary!  We had a big dinner at Dad’s and had not one, but 3 different birthday treats (cheesecake for my awesome Brother, a “cake” made entirely of 3 types of ice-cream and toppings for Sister M, and a  Super rich gluten free chocolate “Ex-Girlfriend” Cake for her hubby—who has his birthday the day before hers!).  Sadly, people started to leave after dinner. 

Monday was nice and mellow.  Sister M got stuff packed up and then we went into town.  SmallDaughter FINALLY got to have her horsie riding—the first 2 classes of the season got cancelled for bad weather!  Youngest Brother took Awesome Brother to the airport on his way home, so we got to see them for a little while, then we just hung out with everybody. Grandpa & Grandma took the boys swimming at the Y, but SmallDaughter wasn’t really feeling good, so we didn’t even try to go.   Dear Auntie and her boys left at about 10 pm, so we came home then too. 

SmallDaughter is on spring break this week, which is good because she has spent the last 2 days laying on the couch with a chest cold and fever.  She is starting to feel better, but she is less than impressed with her mom—I have put an onion poultice on her the last 2 nights.  (everybody asks, so I will tell you:  just cut 2 onions into rings, and slice 4 or 5 cloves of garlic, then smash them with a French knife, so the oils are activated, then put them in a pan with either olive or coconut oil on low heat until they start to clarify—you are NOT trying to cook them, and you don’t want them nicely brown and carmelized.  Then, cool them down till they are a comfortable temperature, and apply a thick layer of Vick’s (and I also use a few drops of Tea Tree oil) to the back and chest and rub them in, then cover the chest and the back with the onions and wrap her up snugly in plastic wrap). 

She was not fond of this the first night—but she REALLY hated it the second night when she knew what was coming!  She said “Owie” “No” and “Hot”—which was funny, since it wasn’t any of those things, but she doesn’t have words for “nasty” “slimy” and “gross”!  It is a very interesting fragrance mix—let me tell you!  But it has really helped clear her up. 

We are recovering nicely from all the fun, and I am trying to catch up on all the jobs My Favorite Gentleman needs me to get done for him!  Tomorrow we are going to buy my hive and beekeeping tools, since the bees will be in sometime in the next two weeks!  Yaaay!  I am super excited for them!  And—in perfect timing, next Friday the Local Beekeepers Association is having a “live bee dump” at their monthly meeting.  They will show us exactly how to “dump” our bees into their new home and get it functioning right! I am glad to have so much help and mentoring!

With all the fun we have been having, we have lots of people we love who are going through hard times, and we are still praying for them.  It is always interesting to see how life is such up and downs!  However—I know that these times with the people we love (as noisy, crazy and hectic as they may be!) are the best memories and the real stuff that life is made of!  I am grateful to have a framework for living, so that when our family gets together, it is pure fun—no fights, no screaming or hitting, just love everywhere you look. 

I just want to share some of my Dad’s take on the week:

One of the most remarkable aspects of the whole weekend to me was "the guys".  We had six adolescent and young single adult males ranging in age from 14 to 28.   Not only were they not lost in their own world or electronic gadgets, they were deeply involved in everything.  (The biggest point of contention was who got to hold the baby).  Their major activity was playing with the rug-rats.  In the disengaged society we live in, I find this truly wonderful.  What great fathers these guys will make.

Pictures coming soon!

I have been busier than a marshmallow vendor while Rome burned!  At the beginning of March, I realized I did not have A SINGLE UNSCHEDULED DAY in the entire month!  It has gotten busier since then!  And, while all of the stuff is good—some of it is FABULOUS, even—it is still LOTS OF BUSY!

 Let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up.

Both the Yoga and the Herbs classes that we are taking are offered though our Tech HS Community Ed classes.  Yoga is very sneaky—it starts off so easy you think “this isn’t even really exercise!” and then, before you know it, you are working so hard you can’t believe it!  I am really enjoying it—I love it even more because I am doing it with BigGirl!  I wish we had somewhere closer (it is about 45 min North of us) so we could do it several times a week. 

The Herb class is actually 5 freestanding classes that I signed up to take as the entire series.  Mary Colvin, the teacher is a woman who is a Master Herbalist, certified through Dr. Christopher’s School of Natural Healing in Springville, UT (where my friend Heidi worked).  The first class was on Growing a Medicinal Herb Garden.  The second class was “Herbal First Aid” and the third was “Herbs for Women’s Issues”.  I am working on designing and preparing gardens, and hope to plant them next year.  However, it did make me feel better about several “weeds” that I never got around to exterminating—turns out they are awesome helpers that I was already growing!  YAY!

I am taking Beekeeping classes, also, and I will gradually buy apiary supplies this year and get my bees next spring.  I am REALLY excited about that—I didn’t think it would be possible to think bees were any cooler, but the more I learn, the more fabulously awesome they are—truly celestially designed!  (However, the pests that affect them are DEFINITELY in the telestial category!  GROSS and nasty!)   I will probably start my “vermiculture” worm farm this year.  Pretty neat little critters—but not as beautiful as bees!  Red Wigglers eat 1 ½ times their body weight a day in household waste that they turn into the highest possible quality compost!  You can just set up a bin in the basement or outside and make sure they have plenty of kitchen scraps and newsprint, and enough moisture, and they do their magic without much outside interference!

We had the Candyland Activity last Wednesday, so now I can give you more details!  The Laurels wanted to plan a really special Mother-Daughter Activity, and they recruited me, because they know where my talents lie!  We actually started the planning back in November, and over the Christmas break Sarah K and Aryn P came for a 2 day sleepover, and we started work on decorations.  BigGirl and I have been working at least once a week on parts of it since then! 

It started with walking in the YW hallway under 8 ft tall Candy Canes flanking the inner glass doors, with a “Welcome to Candyland” sign.  There were bright paper squares on the floor, like the game board.  If you followed them, you went into the YW room, where the front chalkboard had been turned into the Peppermint Forest, and they did a craft, decorating picture frames with Starlight Mints (red and green).  Then they went to the “Gumdrop Mountains”, and guessed how many gumdrops were in a jar.  Then on to “Peanut Acres” where they played cornhole with beanbags shaped like peanuts.  Each of those areas had a large (4-5 foot long) painted backdrop.  Then out into the hall, past “Lollipop Woods” which had 6 paper mache lollipops that were about a foot across standing in a grove. 

In the RS room we had 4 tables set up, each with a brightly colored plastic tablecloth. The table centerpieces were little gingerbread houses. Over the chalkboard we had the “Candy Castle” which was a castle I painted on sheet years ago for a little girls birthday.  Up at the front we had the “Chocolate Swamp, where I had a chocolate brown silk fabric “chocolate waterfall” and a real chocolate fountain, with stuff to dip.  On the other food table we had sandwiches in the shape of gingerbread people and “cupcakes” made with mini meatloaves in aluminum cupcake papers, topped with mashed potatoes piped on like frosting, then baked.  Out in the hallway by the gym, we blocked it off with the piano, and then put up giant stand up Gingerbread Mom & Daughter cutouts, where we took pictures of the girls with their moms, and we will put those pictures in their frames as a memento.  It was a HUGE amount of work, but we had a really good turnout, and we had several of the less active girls and everybody had fun, so it was worth it!

The next morning was our Seminary visit from our Stake Seminary Supervisor.  He drives all the way up from  Columbus twice a year to visit!  (He has to get up at 2am, and he is still willing, cheerful and brings donuts!  Talk about dedication!)  After he left, I jumped in the shower, then got SmallDaughter dressed and on the bus, then left for town, where I hooked up with a couple from my Ward, and my newly returned from his mission cousin, and we went to the Temple.  It was a wonderful session, even though I was running on 4 hours of sleep!  I stayed in town for an hour, then drove over to the church, where I carpooled BACK down to Columbus for the Stake Primary Leadership Meeting.  It was also very good.  There were several classes on Special Needs children, which was excellent, since SmallDaughter’s new Assistant was able to go! 

I had been really worried about finding a babysitter for SmallDaughter for Saturday’s Quad Stake Seminary Activity/Dance—I knew I would be gone 10+ hours, and there was NO way she would like it!  However—the babysitter situation was looking pretty dire!  Grandpa & Grandma were in Maryland for her brother’s wedding, LargeCousin & Auntie were in their final performance of “Oklahoma”, and Bestie K and her kids are in TX, where her mom has been in Intensive Care with internal bleeding.  Even my backups—were all babysitting grandkids!  AARGH!  I finally asked the mom of one of my seminary boys, and she was willing, but was sick, and not sure how she would be feeling.  Anyway, in blessings many layers deep, My Favorite Gentleman got to come home on Friday, so SmallDaughter just got to have an awesome day with her daddy!  He took her to see “Wreck-it Ralph”, to ride the carousel (once on the chariot, twice on kitties), and to eat Hamburgers at McDonalds! 

So, on Friday, I worked on the house (slowly, since I was super-tired!), and I was at Beekeeping Class when My Favorite Gentleman got home, but boy was it nice to see him!  It is working out that he comes home once a month, and I go see him once, so I average seeing him every two weeks, with the kids seeing him once.  Better than nothing, but less than ideal.  Please pray that he will be transferred to a crew that works 10 days on, 4 off, so he can be home more.  Saturday was the big seminary activity, and it was really fun.  I took my whole seminary crew and we had a great time, but I got home a little after midnight, and had to leave the house on Sunday at 8, so I could be at Ward Council by 9.  I presented the new Summer Project—instead of Book of Mormon Reading, we are doing a Summer of Service.  I have had so much inspiration on this, it has already been awesome for me, and I hope we can get the rest of the Ward to catch the spirit!

Today we are going to go pick up our new chicks!  Always a fun time!  (We just got back—they are--OF COURSE!—super cute!)  And varied, because I just got 25 assorted brown egg layers. I think we have 4 or 5 breeds—lots of barred (black and white striped feathers, very pretty), some yellow chicks that will probably be regular red chickens and 4 cute little “booted” girls that have feathers on their feet, and are a really pretty “seal” brown like a Siamese cat! 

BigGirl going to Spain is because we found a neat program called Pueblo Ingles, where they pair up native English speakers with Spaniards who need to practice English.  We only have to pay for plane fare, and they put the “anglos” up at a 4-Star resort, all expenses paid for 1 or 2 weeks.  All she has to do, is have lots of 1 on1 conversations with teens from Spain!  And,  they use English speakers from all over the world, so she can meet friends from South Africa, Ireland, Australia, etc.  The only problem we are having is with scheduling, because the teen program mainly runs through the month of July—right when she has Youth Conference and Girls Camp!  We are doing our best, but she is planning to try next year if we can’t make this year work!  And for just awesomeness, our passports have arrived!

How is everybody doing?  Well, My Favorite Gentleman is working lots and lots, BigGirl is busy doing awesome young lady things like watching the Lizzie Bennett Diaries (which finish up next week!!), staying updated on several webcomics, reading stacks and stacks of books, going to plays and various social awesome things, and  being on the Stake Youth Committee.  LargeBoy is drawing all the time, and having a great time being awesome with his seminary bros.  They alternate between video games, drawing, creating live online adventures via chat with the various far away friends, learning to play musical instruments and practicing sweet dance moves.  He is also working on becoming a fashion-meister with his own hipster, thrift store style.  It is pretty awesome (often involves hats, suspenders, cool belts and custom decorated canvas tennis shoes).  SmallDaughter is doing really well.  She is continuing to progress in school, and when I had our meeting with her teacher, Mrs. K, (who taught her for 3^rd grade, didn’t for 4^th and had her this year for 5^th), she has noticed LOTS more concentration, and Lots less picking, which gives me hope.  I am just doggy paddling along, trying to keep everything in balance!

Such a blessing!

Each birth is a blessing!  

And when it happens that the birth is a new niece for me--even better!

My dear sister is quite the specialist--

This sweet little girl is

her 5th girl!

(She has a great recipe--look how cute they are!)

Not that I am at all biased--but these girls are all as smart as they are cute!

(Proud Daddy was taking the pictures!)

It seems a little weird to me that my younger sisters have more children than I do!  

I spent so many years being the trail blazer, it is now a slightly odd feeling to be outnumbered!

Whew!

I haven't posted in a coon's age because SmallDaughter decided to make life...interesting. By climbing up and getting a bottle of lamp oil (the refined kerosene type) off the top of the refrigerator, and drinking it. We immediately called 911, and she got to spend several days in the hospital, and another week recovering. Now that I have done more research, I know how scared I should have been! I was worried about her stomach and esophagus being damaged--but the really scary part is learning how dangerous it is for the lungs (I didn't know I needed to worry about her lungs!).  

Here is a little sample of the reading I have been doing  (I underlined my favorite panic inducing statements!):
"Hydrocarbons ranked sixth in substances most frequently involved in human exposures reported to the American Association of Poison Control Centers National Data Collection System in 1988. Roughly half of these cases involved children under the age of 6. This is not surprising in view of the fact that hydrocarbon-based products are commonly found in the home. With adults, gasoline siphoning or deliberate inhalation (“huffing”) appear to be the major sources of accidental hydrocarbon exposure.

Symptoms of aliphatic hydrocarbon ingestion, in the absence of toxic substituents, are confined to the gastrointestinal tract and the respiratory tract. Local effects include a burning sensation in the mouth and pharynx, nausea, gastric irritation, belching and diarrhea. These rarely require treatment and are considered fairly innocuous.

Pulmonary effects, when they do occur, are the result of aspiration. A severe necrotizing pneumonitis, with direct tissue destruction, can occur. Aspiration can occur at the time of ingestion, or during vomiting or gastric lavage. Aspiration can occur from minute amounts of hydrocarbon. Pulmonary toxicity represents the most common complication of hydrocarbon ingestion and accounts for the majority of fatalities.

When aspiration occurs, the patient may initially experience coughing, choking, gagging or grunting respirations.

X-ray findings are usually significant at two to eight hours after ingestion. Pulmonary infiltrates or perihilar densities have commonly been seen. Following aspiration, deterioration of the patient may occur over the first 24-72 hours, with resolution of symptoms in three to six days. Bacterial superinfection is also possible. Hemorrhagic edema can rapidly lead to the patient's demise.

Aspiration of aliphatic hydrocarbons may result in lethargy, tremors, and, rarely, convulsions or coma. These effects are more likely due to severe pulmonary injury or hypoxia."

So many scary things!

However--she is back up and around, and I am feeling SO blessed!

So, I am going to try to be better about posting...but (sorry!) no promises!

Life goes speeding by!

On Tuesday, for Relief Society Homemaking meeting we went to Catholic Charities to see just where exactly the 100 pies we make every year in November go. They were super nice, and I love knowing that good people are looking out for our brothers and sisters. The only weirdness was when lovely Patrice (our hostess), typed in the wrong code for the alarm system as we went down to see the food pantry, so we spent about 20 minutes huddled in a hallway with a VERY loud alarm went off—making jokes about what the police blotter would report about the Mormons robbing the Catholics! In the end, 2 police cars showed up, but everything was resolved smoothly.

On Thursday, I got to drive down to the Columbus Temple with a sweet sister from my Ward. It was so nice being able to do something spiritual for myself. It was a very peaceful and relaxing session, and I am super glad I went, and we had a lovely lunch afterwards.

BigGirl and LargeBoy both had big weekend plans. BigGirl went to Ohayocon ("Ohayo" is Japanese for Hello, so it is a clever pun with "Ohio"--a convention for people who enjoy Anime, Manga and Japanese Culture--which perfectly describes BigGirl!) with her friend Danielle, and D’s brother & his wife, then went to church on Sunday with them, then I picked her up. She looked very cute in her costume—Toph Bei Fong from Avatar the Last Airbender (and, having learned a major lesson last year, packed plenty of food--a cooler full of Bento).

LargeBoy went hiking at Hocking Hills State Park with his best friend Tall Sam’s family (it is a little confusing that both of his best friends have the same name!)—it was lovely weather, which has since dropped like a rock into the single digits (from the 60’s!).

SmallDaughter & I also had a big weekend—we went to the lovely home of our Primary 2nd Counselor for a Primary Worker Brunch (she had a great time playing with the other kids and their toys!), then I took her to the carousel, where she (ironically, in my opinion, since she begs for horsies every time we drive past!) did not ride any horsies! She rode the tiger, giraffe (twice!), bunny, kitty, bear & chariot. Then I dragged her off to the library, and she spent the rest of the day, expressing her disgust at my actions and her desire to go ride the carousel some more!

In the evening I cleaned the Church, with help from LargeBoy & Tall Sam (They went back to Tall Sam’s afterwards), LargeCousin & Sister V. I had been worried that I would be alone to do it, so I was really relieved!

My Favorite Gentleman hasn’t been home since Christmas, so he doesn’t have much to report in news—he is really cold and working hard.

The funniest quotes do not come from my house, but from my dear Sister's, where my nephews work hard every day to make my life funnier!

Almost 4 Year old (singing):
“Mary had a little man,
little man,
little man,
Mary had a little man,
And it was quite a show.”

Also, the boys are excitedly planning the turning 4 birthday party. Last year he had a “baby cow” party, but this year his big brother(age 5) informed him that baby cows aren’t cool, and what he really needs is a “Bully-Cow” party! Blessedly, the only experience they have with “Bullys” is as daddy cows!

A New Year

I think it is very easy on blogs to get a pretty one sided view of the blogger. I know I often find myself feeling pretty down that I don't make my own yogurt or scrub down my baseboards monthly (seriously, I read blogs on both of those things today--I can honestly admit that I scrub my baseboards never!).

I could only show you the glossy highlights of my life. I want to do posts on how fabulously mellow and great our Christmas was. And how proud I am of my awesome teenagers (and how on earth, with parents like us, did they end up cool AND with rhythm? Mysteries abound!)And how awesome my Christmas party with my seminary kids went (the words hilarious and awesome spring immediately to mind!) And I could post pictures of the neat decorations we are making for a Young Women's Mother/Daughter activity (but I can't until Feb, because that one is a secret--but we are sure having fun with it!)

But instead I will confess that I spent the whole entire day working on the finances that I have been sorely (pathetically, really!) neglecting--for months . I KNOW it is not a big job to balance my checkbook, etc, if I do it every week. And, furthermore, I KNOW it turns into a big, hairy, stinky, nasty bearcat of a job if I neglect it. Sigh.

I am also worrying and praying for people I love. For babies to gestate and be born safely, for the hospitalized to have their Doctors guided and inspired, for the worried, confused, stressed and grieving to have their hearts lifted and their burdens made lighter. It makes me think of how, in the Book of Mormon, when Alma and his people were slaves to the Lamanites (and the renegade Nephites), who treated them horribly and forced them to carry heavy burdens, that the miracle they were given was NOT to have the burdens removed. It was that they were strengthened so the burdens seemed light. I pray for miracles like that for those I love whose burdens seem almost to heavy to bear.

2013. Maybe I will be able to dink around less, and accomplish a few things that will stay done! In general, I avoid New Years Resolutions (I merely have to look at my track record to see why!), and prefer to think of each day as a great place to jump in and become better.

But I am still not betting that I will scrub my baseboards every month.